Color Change After
Lasik, PRK, LASEK, Epi-Lasik, RLE, etc.

A very, very few patients have reported a color shift toward the red spectrum after refractive surgery. This is not a color filter, where a particular color is not visible, but a shift in colors where all visible colors are changed to a slightly different frequency.

This phenomena is very, very rare and not well understood or documented. Theories abound, but it appears that the cornea after conventional or custom wavefront Lasik, PRK, LASEK, and Epi-Lasik changes the frequency of the light passing through. It is not clearly understood if this is a correction of a previously undiagnosed problem, or an actual transformation of color perception.

The color shift has not been reported to cause any kind of color blindness and has been reported by some as a visual enhancement. A person working with colors, such as a designer or an artist, may find this change a bit disconcerting at first and may want to consider the small possibility of a color shift when evaluating refractive surgery. By all reports, the change seems to be more of a nuisance than a problem. Once a person becomes accustomed to the shift, it is all but unnoticeable.

Color shift has not been reported with P-IOLs. Color changes with RLE tend to relate to the removal of a discolored natural crystalline lens and replacement with a clear intraocular lens (IOL). Color change with RLE is actually resolution of a discoloration problem.

If you are ready to choose a doctor to be evaluated for conventional or custom wavefront Lasik, All-Laser Lasik, PRK, LASEK, Epi-Lasik, CK, RLE, or any refractive surgery procedure, we highly recommend you consider a doctor who has been evaluated and certified by the USAEyes nonprofit organization. Locate a USAEyes Evaluated & Certified Lasik Laser Eye Surgery Doctor.